This plug-in unit can housing concept is a widespread control device concept which is known from document DE 3936906 C2 for motor vehicle electronics, in order to protect the electronic device from contamination. For this purpose, the multicontact connector not only has contact elements but is also surrounded by a connector collar in which the connecting elements of the multicontact connector are arranged, wherein the contact elements are encapsulated by injection molding with a plastics material which forms an integrated unit with the connector collar. A printed circuit board assembly composed of a populated printed circuit board is arranged on this unit composed of contact elements, contact carrier and connector collar, and forms a plug-in unit which can be inserted into the can housing which has, on an open end face, a peripheral seal which, when the electronic device is assembled, seals the can housing in that a cover which is integrally injection molded onto the connector collar covers the open end face of the can housing.
Such a known plug-in unit can housing concept is shown with FIG. 10. The concept has a plastics can housing 3 with an open end face 4 and a clear width w, wherein a peripheral groove 30 is arranged on the open end face 4, which peripheral groove 30 can accommodate a sealing element 29. A printed circuit board assembly 31, which is composed of a populated printed circuit board 6 and a multicontact connector 7, can be inserted into the can housing 3, wherein the edge regions 26 of the printed circuit board 6 slide into the can housing 3 along the guide grooves 24. In this context, the open end face is covered by a cover 28 which is integrally injection molded onto the multicontact connector 7. The joint between the multicontact connector 7 and the can housing is therefore on the outside and is therefore subjected to all environmental influences.
For this reason, this concept is predominantly applied in the passenger compartments of vehicles and is not used for hermetically sealed electronic devices. Implementing this can housing concept for sealed control device applications, in particular in vehicle engineering, requires extensive sealing measures at the joint between the can housing 3 and the connector region. For this purpose, the connection between the can housing 3 and the connector with the printed circuit board assembly 31 has to be additionally hermetically sealed by means of the sealing element 29.
In this context, additional materials such as silicone insertion seals or bonding agents such as polyurethane adhesives are used. Such sealing measures will require additional processes and additional materials and therefore give rise to increased material costs and fabrication costs. Furthermore, the introduction of sealing measures requires additional space, as FIG. 10 shows with the sealing groove 30, as a result of which the outer dimensions of such electronic devices, in particular control devices for motor vehicles, are increased disadvantageously.